With the 4th of July behind us, clean up is well underway and some runaway dogs are still waiting for their families to bring them home. We got a chance to go to a couple of shelters and all of them told us the number of runaway pups seemed to be less than last year.
In fact, almost all of the shelters had only a handful of dogs come in after the fireworks went off, which means people are more vigilant of their pups during this time of year.
Mischelle Avalos, the Intake and Retention Counselor at Palm Springs Animal Center, told us they’ve had a good year.
"We only have three in the back and animal control brought back some dogs from yesterday."
Michelle says it’s because most of them are micro-chipped and have collars.
"That makes our job a little bit easier because they come in and I can call that number and say, hey your animal is here at this shelter….come pick up your pet, and reunite the family."
So far there have been over 10 calls reporting a missing pet, but only a handful of dogs have been brought to the shelter as a result of the loud noises. And while some pups don’t have any scratches on them, others aren’t so lucky.
According to Mischelle, some "just come in all bloody because they don’t stop. The pain doesn’t tell them to stop. They’ll keep going and going. So they’ll crash through a fence, go through a glass door. I mean, it gets really bad like that."
Which is why it’s so important that dog owners pay extra attention to their fur babies when they’re surrounded by loud noises.
Dog owners can bring their pets in and distract them, play with them, and even throw on some tunes. Giving them some treats also helps take their minds off of the fireworks so that the experience isn’t as traumatizing for them.
Of course, it is vital that all dogs have microchips put in between their shoulder blades. The chip is as big as a grain of rice and can be the difference between life and death.
